40 soldiers killed in Houthi missile attack in Yemen's Marib

At least 40 soldiers were killed on Saturday in a ballistic missile attack by Iran-allied Houthi rebels on a Saudi-led coalition military base in Yemen's northeastern province of Marib, a medic in the base said.

"The toll rose to 40. All the killed were Yemeni government soldiers," the medic told Xinhua by phone on condition of anonymity, adding dozens of other soldiers sustained critical injuries.

The attack came when the soldiers were gathering in the main ground of the base at sunset.

There was no immediate comment from the Houthis.

Previous missile attacks on military bases in Marib were claimed by the Houthi group.

The Arab coalition intervened in the Yemeni conflict in March 2015 to support the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi against the Houthis who stormed the capital Sanaa and controlled much of the country's north in late 2014.